William Woods Holden
North Carolina politician
Died when: 73 years 98 days (879 months)Star Sign: Sagittarius
William Woods Holden (November 24, 1818 – March 1, 1892) was an American politician who served as the 38th and 40th governor of North Carolina.
He was appointed by President Andrew Johnson in 1865 for a brief term and then elected in 1868.He served until 1871 and was the leader of the state's Republican Party during the Reconstruction Era.
Holden was the second governor in American history to be impeached, and the first to be removed from office through that process.
His impeachment was politically motivated due to his suppression of the Ku Klux Klan.After Republicans lost the 1870 election, Democrats impeached him on eight charges for supposed actions during the Kirk–Holden war.
He is the only North Carolina governor to have been impeached.In 2011, Holden was posthumously pardoned by the North Carolina Senate.
